LG-Migrate To New Technology

Migrate to New Technology
Instructor -Nigatu Mekonnen
UC Descriptors
The rationale behind this unit emphasizes the importance of constantly reviewing work
processes, skills and techniques in order to ensure that the quality of the entire business process
is maintained at the highest level possible through the appropriate application of new
technology. To this end, the person is typically engaged in on-going review and research in
order to discover and apply new technology or techniques to improve aspects of the
organization’s activities.
LO1: Apply Existing Knowledge and Techniques to Technology and Transfer
Existing knowledge need be applied to adopt new technology and to transfer it. To apply
existing knowledge and techniques to technology and transfer you will perform:
1. Identify situations where existing knowledge can be used as the basis for developing new
skills.
2. Acquire & use new or upgraded technology skills to enhance learning.
3. Identify, classify and use new or upgraded equipment where appropriate, for the benefit of
the organization.
What is information technology literacy?
Information technology literacy refers to a computer user’s ability to “read” and interpret a
computer program. Skills and techniques that you learn in one program may very well be
transferred into another (especially if the programs are developed by the same company). Menu
structures, icons and formats may be similar in programs, thus making it easy for a user to teach
them how to use a new program.
Need to Acquire & use new or upgraded technology skills
In the majority of cases, the lack of skills related to using and supporting new technology
hinders the migration into the new technology, causing missed opportunities. Therefore, it is
important for to upgrade your skills in response to any new technologies that are emerging in
the industry. Most new technologies require IT professionals and other employees to upgrade or
acquire new skills. This is critical to organizational survival in today’s competitive environment.
Activity 1
1. What does the term “Information Technology Literacy” mean? W What are the purposes
of IT literacy?
2. How does IT Literacy assist an IT user/ what are the importance and of IT literacy to
users?
3. How would you measure someone’s level of IT Literacy?
4. What is your level of IT Literacy? (High, medium, low?) Why?
5. When you are using a program for the first time, what are steps you take to familiarize
and learn how to work it?
6. What advice do you think you could give to users wanting to develop their level of IT
literacy? (research some methods on the Internet if required)
pg. 1
What is IT literacy?
IT literacy is the ability of an individual working independently or with others to use tools,
resources, processes, and system responsibly to access and evaluate in any medium and to use
the information to solve problems and communicate effectively.
Importance of IT literacy to It users
è Allows the skills necessary to effectively manage the hardware and software applications
è Helps you users to successfully find use and evaluate information
è Helps to find, retrieve, analyze and use information
è Incorporate selected into existing knowledge base
è Helps to use information to effectively accomplish tasks
è To solve problems easily
è To understand the economic, legal and social issues surrounding the use of information
Developing information technology Literacy

It is important that users develop methods that work best for them when learning new programs.
Identifying situations where existing knowledge can be used as the basis for developing new
skills is a very important aspect of this. There are a number of ways that a user can do this.
When opening a new program a user should:
 Be aware of the software developer – have you used a program by this developer before?
 What is the menu structure of the program? Is it familiar in any way?
 Are there any familiar icons on the desktop?
 Where is the Help menu located?
 Is there any user manual or online help available?
 Is there a person you know that might be able to assist you?
 Experiment! Try out different aspects of the program, testing various menu and icon
options.
The need to Identify Business Situations to use new technology
There should be a good business case supporting any decision to integrate new technology into
a business. When a technology is used to support a task that is not well suited for the functions
and skill levels of the employees, it is likely to be a waste of time and fail.
Activities
 Why it should be suitable to the business situations?
 Identify the advantages (benefits) and disadvantages of IT to an organization
Use new or upgraded equipment/Technology

Working in an IT environment often means adjusting to change. New equipment is often
purchased and old equipment is often upgraded. In most organisations, it is the IT
department’s job to test new/upgraded equipment, familiarise themselves with the equipment
pg. 2
and then pass this knowledge onto the relevant staff of the organisation. Different organisations
have varying procedures for this process. Some may be quite rigorous, involving filling in
paperwork to ensure that warranties/guarantees are kept valid.
pg. 3
pg. 4
Sources for Identifying New Technology

It takes experience and persistence to find the right technologies to meet the business
requirements of an organisation. You need be aware of the trends of new technology emerging
in the industry. The following are some sources amongst many others that will keep you up-to-
date with these changes.
 Your existing knowledge in the area of investigation will help you to find the right
solution to meet the business needs of the organisation.
 Lessons learnt from other similar implementations, experiences of other IT
professionals, and best practice amongst other similar national/international organisations
will give you invaluable knowledge and skills when identifying new technologies for the
benefit of the organisation.
pg. 5
 Trade magazines-
Trade and business magazines such as Technology and Business constantly introduce IT
professionals to new technologies.
pg. 6
pg. 7
 The Internet
The Internet, giving access to World Wide Web, forums, newsgroups and mailing lists, is also a
valuable source of information about new technologies.
pg. 8
 Networking
Socialising with other IT professionals and joining professional associations is also a good
source of identifying new technologies available. Suppliers and consultants will also keep you
updated with trends and information about new technology.
pg. 9
pg. 10
 Formal training
Attending formal courses will certainly expose you to new technologies available by giving
you an opportunity to identify new technologies — not only through the content of the course
but also by getting an opportunity to network with other IT professionals.
Identifying the impact of New Technology

New technologies are emerging in the market every day. You need to follow a systematic
procedure to identify the implications/impact of the new technology for all the stakeholders.
 Implementing new technology means change. It is expected that the new technology will
make life much easier for users by providing better mechanisms for performing and managing
regular organizational tasks.
 We must anticipate how the new technology will impact all stakeholders.
 You should also be mindful of the magnitude of the impact the technology will have on the
enterprise.
 You must bear in mind that user (stakeholder) acceptance is the key to successful
implementation.
pg. 11
Assessing the impact of new technology on the business
pg. 12
1. Gather Information about the Technology

 Talk to vendors and other IT professionals to learn as much as possible about the new
technology and other related technologies.
 Use IT magazines and other journals to learn about the technology including legal and
political impacts.
 See how this technology compares with the existing technology to get an idea of the
magnitude of the impact on the organizational functions.
pg. 13
pg. 14
2. Gather Information about the Business Strategies

Your choice of new technology should comply with the company’s overall business strategy.
The strategies of the business may promote or hinder the application of new technology.
pg. 15
3. Identify and list the interests of stakeholders

Stakeholders are the people who have a share or an interest in the business and will be affected
by the new technology. The acceptance of the new technology into the organization will be
increased when you take the needs of all stakeholders into account before choosing the new
technology.
pg. 16
4. Assess the impact on interests of stakeholders

Assess not only the financial, educational and economic impact of new technology but also the
social, legal and political impact that new technology will have on the stakeholders.
Skills for acquiring and implementing new technology

IT professionals must refresh their skills and use their existing knowledge when acquiring and
implementing new technologies. The following are the types of skills essential in acquiring and
implementing new technologies.
1. Technical skills
Once a new technology is identified, it is fundamental that you gain the technical skills
necessary before migrating to it. These technical skills may relate to hardware, software,
network, PC support or programming knowledge.
Building technical skills is an ongoing and never-ending process for an IT professionals and
users. While you rely on your existing technical knowledge to identify new technologies, you
would need to acquire new skills before you can successfully implement a new technology into
the organization.
pg. 17
2. Interpersonal and Psychological Skills

When implementing new technology, an IT professional must further develop interpersonal and
psychological skills, so they can deliver the new technology in a user-friendly manner.
Interpersonal skills will be useful when you need to convey new information to the people that
would be affected by the technology.
Psychological skills will give you the ability to create harmony in difficult situations and
promote better acceptance of new technology. As implementing new technologies, you need to
be skilled in customer relations, oral and written communications, dependability, teamwork and
leadership.
3. Managerial skills
It is important that the IT professional be conversant /up-to-date/ in managerial and design skills
so that new technology is chosen and implemented in line with business objectives.
Activity 2
Take one of the organizations of your choice. Ensure that the following questions are answered
1. How does the IT department become aware of equipment that requires upgrading or new
purchases?
2. What is the purchasing process? Are multiple quotes required for new purchases?
3. Are there any paperwork/databases that need updating when equipment is purchased or
upgraded? Why would there be a need to do this?
4. Who is responsible for the installation of new equipment/upgrading of equipment?
5. How are warranties that come with new equipment handled/filed?
6. Is there a testing process undertaken on new/upgraded equipment? What does it involve?
7. What are the sources of information commonly accessed when installing/testing new
equipment?
8. What happens to old/unused equipment?
9. Are there any environmental considerations when purchasing/upgrading equipment?
10. Are there any occupational, health and safety considerations when purchasing/upgrading
equipment?
11. Is there a process for seeking feedback from users on the performance of new/upgraded
equipment?
LO2: Apply Functions of Technology to Assist In Solving Organizational Problems

1. Test the appropriateness of the new technology-Conduct testing of new or upgraded
equipment according to the specification manual. This is mainly to make sure its
appropriateness to the organization functions
pg. 18
2. Aligning technology with organizational strategies/functions- Apply features of new or

upgraded equipment /technology/ within the organization
3. Use features and functions of new or upgraded equipment/technology/ for solving
organizational problems
4. Access and use sources of information relating to new or upgraded equipment/technology/
Benefits of appropriate business use of new technology

 bring the desired outcome for the organisation: unless new technology is used
appropriately, it may not bring the desired outcome for the organisation.
 Save organisation’s valuable resources and money- Rushing to purchase new technology
without prior assessment of its appropriateness or relevance to organisational goals wastes
your organisation’s valuable resources and money.
 To be most cost efficient and appropriate manner- Your objective is to not only apply
new technology to solve the organisation’s problems, but to employ it in the most cost
efficient and appropriate manner.
 To achieve competitive edge in the market
 to enhance service, promote innovation, and improve communication
 reduced costs and increase profits
 improved quality of existing services
 existing resources being utilised to optimum capacity resulting in better products and better
ways of conducting business
 increased flexibility
NB. A new technology that does not lead to real benefits to the organisation cannot be
justified.
pg. 19
Aligning business strategies/functions and IT strategies
pg. 20
 Aligning business strategies/functions and it strategies means an IT manager should

understand the link between business objective, business strategy and IT strategy.
pg. 21
o If your company is to get the maximum benefit from the new technology, then the new
technology must be properly associated with the company’s business strategy.
pg. 22
o All IT managers should understand that IT exists to support the business objectives of the
organisation and not the other way around. IT must support the business goals in every
service it provides.
pg. 23
o IT management must take all measures to ensure that information technology is part of
business strategy planning with a view to aligning IT with the business strategies of the
organisation.
pg. 24
Roles of IT managers to ensure that IT is totally aligned with business objectives

IT managers need to:
 Provide business-focussed leadership rather than technology-focussed leadership. The IT
leadership must be connected to business management.
 Think about the impact of tasks on business as a whole rather than provide solutions for
individual tasks.
 Concentrate more on end-user experience with new technologies rather than the technology
itself.
 Focus on the business goals and let the technology follow.
 Play a strategic role in the future of the organisation.
pg. 25
pg. 26
Types of business technologies
pg. 27
1. Production technologies include:

 Technologies that boosts, aid or enhance production/manufacture of goods. Tools, machines
and utensils used for production would fall in to this category. The primary purpose of
investing in these types of technologies in business is to reduce costs, increase flexibility
and/or improve the quality of the product, such as machines that assemble car components
with greater precision.
 Technologies for the ‘production’ of technical services such as a wide area network (WAN)
and computer software development.
pg. 28
2. Automation technologies include:

 technologies that automate services such as payroll
 technologies that automate the tasks that are labour intensive or dangerous, e.g. human-
like machines (robots) to perform very specific production tasks and point of sale terminals
at a warehouse.
3. Technologies that improve services

Technologies that improve the quality of services will lead to increased profit by drawing
clients back for more service, eg more accurate diagnostics in the medical field made
possible by new technologies and automated patient monitoring in hospitals.
4. Technologies in design, Design technologies include:

 technologies that are used to design or develop a new product or service such as
Computer Aided Drafting (CAD) and Computer Aided Systems Design (CASD)
 technologies that promote innovation by introducing new, more efficient, cost effective
and improved quality services or products to the consumer.
pg. 29
Supporting Business by New Technology

For the organisation to be efficiently supported by available technology, it should
pg. 30
1. Understand the organization’s core business
pg. 31
Such organization core business may include business goals, business functions and features.
 Certain organisational functions such as purchasing, selling, marketing, production and
warehousing are common to many organisations. The control of these functions depends
on the size and type of the organisation.
 the organisation structure gives a clear picture of how the organisation is managed and
provides a picture of the communication hierarchy. This information will be very useful
when planning for and implementing new technology.
pg. 32
Sources of an organisation’s core business:
pg. 33
 Business documents: - produced by the organisation such as mission statements,

strategic plans and organisational charts
 A mission statement states the main purpose of the organisation and usually incorporates
its financial, social and/or environmental goals.
 A strategic plan defines how the organisation plans to achieve its goals, and includes the
activities it will undertake to achieve them.
 Organisation charts can provide a graphical representation of the business in terms of
how it is organised to fulfil its core business.
 An understanding of an organisation’s structure and functions, as well as how they

interact, is essential for the organisation to be efficiently supported by available
technology.
2. Understand how business planning/organizational needs relate to IT solutions

To understand how the business planning process relates to the development of IT business
solutions, we must first define the organisational needs and establish the business
requirements.
 One definition of organisational need is a lack or problem that requires actions so that
organisational goals or objectives can be achieved.
 As a support person or as a manager, you must determine the organisational needs, and
then use your expertise to match solutions to those needs.
 Often those needs could be met with new technology, but you need to know how to
determine which type or feature of new technology will best suit the need.
pg. 34
3. Develop the product selection process and criteria

The product selection criteria are drawn from business requirements of an organisation. An
organisation’s business requirements will state high-level outcomes of any new technology.
Business requirements may be the organization’s missions, visions, values, goals, objectives,
policies, rules.
Sources of the organization’s requirements

They can be found in documents such as:
 corporate mission or vision statements
 long-term goals stated in strategic plans
 product specifications from project plans and designs
From these high-level outcomes stated in the business requirements, a set of criteria can be
established for selecting any new technology that the organisation will acquire.
Criteria for selecting the new technology.

The high-level outcomes of the business requirements could implicate all or any of the
following criteria for selecting the new technology.
pg. 35
pg. 36
Compatibility: New technology will need to work with existing hardware, system and
application software with minimum changes to both.
pg. 37
pg. 38
Interoperability:- The new technology must be able to interoperate with the existing network.
pg. 39
pg. 40
Maintainability: -The current IT staff should be able to maintain the system even after the
introduction of the new technology.
Centralization/accessibility: The new technology must be accessible by multiple users at

various sites.
pg. 41
pg. 42
Security: The new technology must be accessed by authorised users only.
pg. 43
pg. 44
Ease of use: Existing users must be able to operate new technology with minimum re-training.
pg. 45
pg. 46
Scalability: The system introduced using the new technology should be able to cope with
growth of the business, expansion of networks, and a growing number of employees, etc.
pg. 47
pg. 48
4. Matching solutions with strategic directions

Strategic direction is something that is set by upper management. It is very important that you
get the right technology to match the company’s strategic and technological directions.
pg. 49
5. Identifying/evaluating appropriate new technologies

Here are some approaches you can use when selecting a new technology for the benefit of the
organisation.
 Get together with a team of IT professionals in your organisation and put your heads
together to identify a suitable new technology that will help achieve your business goals.
 Horizon scanning — talk to your circle of friends or other IT professionals. Browse through
published reports. Read IT magazines and the World Wide Web to identify new technologies
that are proven to be a success.
 Collective scanning — attends meetings of IT professionals such as the Systems
Administrator’s Guild to discuss their findings.
pg. 50
pg. 51
Evaluating and selecting new technology

How do you evaluate whether the new technology is successfully aligned with the business
requirements?
pg. 52
 Assessing the appropriateness of a technology

This involves assessing the technical as well as economic features of the new technology in the
organisational context. It is important to obtain reliable information about the new technology
from various sources, such as the Internet, consultants, colleagues and other IT professionals, IT
supplements of newspapers, magazines and trade papers, demonstration versions of software
and vendor catalogues containing drawings, designs and product specifications.
pg. 53
 Productivity and efficiency issues

Most organisational problems involve poor productivity and inefficiency. To improve efficiency,
you would need to look at processes linked to the problems and examine the volume, rate and
quality of the output of such processes. Once the processes have been identified, you’ll need to
identify measurable outcomes for the processes. That way you can evaluate the output before
and after introducing the new technology.
pg. 54
 Testing proposed solutions

When processes that are linked to an organisational problem have been identified, you will need
to construct tests to measure outcomes. The simplest form of testing is to note the presence or
absence of an outcome. However, tests for enhanced productivity and efficiency require
examining pre- and post-implementation effects of new technology. Statistics collected before the
application of new technology can be compared with those collected after.
Testing is necessary to ensure that you have:

 installed the component or application properly, and
 that it is working properly.
The testing process will depend on:
 the type of hardware device.
 the type of software application
 the operating system.
pg. 55
LO3: Evaluate New or Upgraded Technology Performance

3.1 Evaluate new or upgraded equipment for performance, usability and against OHS
standards.
3.2 Determine the environmental considerations from new or upgraded equipment.
3.3 Seek feedback from users where appropriate.
Evaluating new or upgraded equipment

Equipment in an organisation needs to be evaluated in a number of areas including
performance, usability and against Occupational Health and Safety. Environmental
considerations should also be taken into account.
There are many reasons for this,

 the foremost being that organisations need to ensure that equipment is working at its
optimum to make sure that users can be effective workers.
 Time lost on equipment that is not working properly, or is ineffective means lost money and
efficiency.
 It can also impact on employee’s job satisfaction level – as it can be very frustrating not to
have the tools you require to do a good job.
The performance of equipment should be evaluated. Equipment that no longer performs to a

certain standard should be marked for upgrading or replacement.
Performance can be evaluated in the following areas:

· Do all functions of the equipment work effectively?
· Is the operating speed of the piece of equipment reasonable?
· Does the equipment meet the requirements of the user?
· Is the piece of equipment reliable? (ie does it start every time?)
The usability of a piece of equipment is probably the most important element for IT users. If
equipment is hard to use, people will be reluctant to use it – wasting time and money. The best
way to measure usability is to survey users on the difficulty level of using the machine. It can be
rated as difficult, challenging or easy to use.
There can be many measures for this:

 How long did it take you to learn how to use the machine?
 Could you learn to use it yourself or did you access help?
 Was this help in the form of a user manual or another user?
Occupational Health and Safety of a piece of equipment needs to be evaluated. It is

unreasonable to make users operate unsafe equipment that could lead to illness or accident.
Items to be considered include:

 Safety of cabling to equipment;
pg. 56
 Electrical testing of equipment (ensure is up to date);

 Equipment meets ergonomic requirements;
 Appropriate training is provided to users to ensure safe operation of equipment;
 Any safety equipment required for operation of machines is provided and used.
Environmental considerations also need to be taken into account. Energy conservation,

recycling and safe disposal of products has become an important focus for many businesses.
When referring to equipment the following should be considered:

 Energy efficiency of product (considered when purchasing);
 Heat produced by product;
 Environmental considerations of consumables (e.g., appropriate disposal of print
cartridges)
 Recycling opportunities.
Activity 3
1. Create a Word document and answer the following questions:

a. Why is it important to evaluate equipment that is new or upgraded?
b. What could be the possible consequences of not effectively evaluating equipment?
c. What are the four main areas of evaluation and what do they entail?
pg. 57

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Migrate to New Technology

Instructor -Nigatu Mekonnen

Developing information technology Literacy

Use new or upgraded equipment/Technology

Sources for Identifying New Technology

Identifying the impact of New Technology

Assessing the impact of new technology on the business

1. Gather Information about the Technology

2. Gather Information about the Business Strategies

3. Identify and list the interests of stakeholders

4. Assess the impact on interests of stakeholders

Skills for acquiring and implementing new technology

2. Interpersonal and Psychological Skills

LO2: Apply Functions of Technology to Assist In Solving Organizational Problems

2. Aligning technology with organizational strategies/functions- Apply features of new or

Benefits of appropriate business use of new technology

Aligning business strategies/functions and IT strategies

 Aligning business strategies/functions and it strategies means an IT manager should

Roles of IT managers to ensure that IT is totally aligned with business objectives

Types of business technologies

1. Production technologies include:

2. Automation technologies include:

3. Technologies that improve services

4. Technologies in design, Design technologies include:

Supporting Business by New Technology

1. Understand the organization’s core business

Sources of an organisation’s core business:

 Business documents: - produced by the organisation such as mission statements,

 An understanding of an organisation’s structure and functions, as well as how they

2. Understand how business planning/organizational needs relate to IT solutions

3. Develop the product selection process and criteria

Sources of the organization’s requirements

Criteria for selecting the new technology.

Centralization/accessibility: The new technology must be accessible by multiple users at

Security: The new technology must be accessed by authorised users only.

4. Matching solutions with strategic directions

5. Identifying/evaluating appropriate new technologies

Evaluating and selecting new technology

 Assessing the appropriateness of a technology

 Productivity and efficiency issues

 Testing proposed solutions

Testing is necessary to ensure that you have:

LO3: Evaluate New or Upgraded Technology Performance

Evaluating new or upgraded equipment

There are many reasons for this,

The performance of equipment should be evaluated. Equipment that no longer performs to a

Performance can be evaluated in the following areas:

There can be many measures for this:

Occupational Health and Safety of a piece of equipment needs to be evaluated. It is

Items to be considered include:

 Electrical testing of equipment (ensure is up to date);

Environmental considerations also need to be taken into account. Energy conservation,

When referring to equipment the following should be considered:

1. Create a Word document and answer the following questions:

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